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Understanding Hyperliquid Subaccounts

Hyperliquid subaccounts allow you to manage multiple trading strategies or positions under a single main account. This guide explains how subaccounts work and how to use them with WhisperHedge.

What Are Subaccounts?

Subaccounts are separate trading accounts that exist under your main Hyperliquid account. Think of them as:

  • Separate wallets - Each has its own balance and positions
  • Independent strategies - Isolate different trading approaches
  • Organizational tools - Keep positions organized by strategy or purpose

Main Account vs Subaccounts

Main Account: - Your primary Hyperliquid account - Connected to your wallet - Can create and manage subaccounts - Has its own positions and balances

Subaccounts: - Created from your main account - Have unique names (e.g., "Strategy A", "HLP-ETH") - Maintain separate balances - Require separate API keys - Can be funded from main account

Why Use Subaccounts?

Strategy Isolation

Keep different strategies separate:

Main Account
├── Subaccount: "Conservative HLP"
│   └── Low-risk, stable pairs
├── Subaccount: "Aggressive HLP"
│   └── High-risk, volatile pairs
└── Subaccount: "Arbitrage"
    └── Arbitrage positions

Risk Management

  • Limit exposure per strategy
  • Prevent cross-contamination
  • Easy to close entire strategy
  • Clear P&L per approach

Organization

  • Track performance by strategy
  • Separate personal vs business
  • Manage multiple clients
  • Clean accounting

Creating Subaccounts

In Hyperliquid

  1. Log into Hyperliquid
  2. Navigate to account settings
  3. Find "Subaccounts" section
  4. Click "Create Subaccount"
  5. Enter a descriptive name
  6. Fund the subaccount (optional)

Naming Convention

Use clear, descriptive names like: - "HLP-ETHUSDC-Conservative" - "Strategy-A-High-Risk" - "Client-ABC-Portfolio"

Funding Subaccounts

To move funds to a subaccount:

  1. Go to your main account
  2. Select "Transfer to Subaccount"
  3. Choose destination subaccount
  4. Enter amount
  5. Confirm transfer

Funds can be moved back to main account anytime.

Using Subaccounts with WhisperHedge

API Keys for Subaccounts

Each subaccount needs its own API key:

  1. Select the subaccount when creating the API key in Hyperliquid
  2. Note the subaccount name - You'll need this exact name
  3. Create read-only key for that specific subaccount
  4. Use in WhisperHedge by entering the subaccount name

Adding Subaccount Positions

When adding a position in WhisperHedge:

  1. Generate API key for the specific subaccount
  2. Add position as normal
  3. Enter the exact subaccount name in the subaccount field
  4. Verify and save

Exact Name Required

The subaccount name must match exactly (including capitalization, spaces, special characters). "Strategy A" ≠ "strategy a" ≠ "StrategyA"

Example Setup

Scenario: You have 3 HLP positions across 2 subaccounts

Main Account (not tracked)

Subaccount: "Conservative"
├── Position 1: ETH/USDC HLP
│   └── API Key 1 (read-only, for "Conservative")
└── Position 2: BTC/USDC HLP
    └── API Key 2 (read-only, for "Conservative")

Subaccount: "Aggressive"
└── Position 3: SOL/USDC HLP
    └── API Key 3 (read-only, for "Aggressive")

In WhisperHedge:

Position 1: - API Key: [key1] - API Secret: [secret1] - Subaccount: "Conservative"

Position 2: - API Key: [key2] - API Secret: [secret2] - Subaccount: "Conservative"

Position 3: - API Key: [key3] - API Secret: [secret3] - Subaccount: "Aggressive"

Common Patterns

Strategy-Based Organization

Main Account
├── "Long-Term-Hold" - Conservative, low-fee pairs
├── "Active-Trading" - Frequent rebalancing
└── "Experimental" - Testing new strategies

Risk-Based Organization

Main Account
├── "Low-Risk" - Stable pairs, tight ranges
├── "Medium-Risk" - Balanced approach
└── "High-Risk" - Volatile pairs, wide ranges

Client-Based Organization

Main Account
├── "Personal" - Your own positions
├── "Client-A" - Client A's positions
└── "Client-B" - Client B's positions

Tracking Subaccount Performance

In WhisperHedge

Each position shows its subaccount in the dashboard:

Position Subaccount Value IL%
ETH/USDC Conservative $10K -2%
BTC/USDC Conservative $15K -1%
SOL/USDC Aggressive $5K -8%

Filtering by Subaccount

Use dashboard filters to:

  • View all positions in a subaccount
  • Compare performance across subaccounts
  • Aggregate metrics by strategy

Best Practices

Naming

  • ✅ Use descriptive, clear names
  • ✅ Include strategy or purpose
  • ✅ Keep names consistent
  • ✅ Avoid special characters if possible

Organization

  • ✅ One strategy per subaccount
  • ✅ Document subaccount purposes
  • ✅ Review subaccount structure quarterly
  • ✅ Archive unused subaccounts

Security

  • ✅ Separate API keys per subaccount
  • ✅ Limit funding to necessary amounts
  • ✅ Monitor each subaccount independently
  • ✅ Close subaccounts when done

In WhisperHedge

  • ✅ Track each subaccount separately
  • ✅ Use consistent naming
  • ✅ Label positions clearly
  • ✅ Monitor aggregate metrics

Troubleshooting

"Subaccount Not Found"

Causes: - Typo in subaccount name - Wrong capitalization - Extra spaces - Subaccount doesn't exist

Solutions: 1. Copy exact name from Hyperliquid 2. Check for spaces before/after name 3. Verify capitalization matches 4. Confirm subaccount exists

"No Positions in Subaccount"

Causes: - API key is for wrong subaccount - Positions exist in different subaccount - Subaccount is empty

Solutions: 1. Verify API key subaccount selection 2. Check which subaccount has the position 3. Confirm position exists in Hyperliquid

"Permission Denied"

Cause: API key not authorized for that subaccount

Solution: 1. Regenerate API key 2. Select correct subaccount during creation 3. Verify read permissions enabled

Main Account Positions

Tracking Main Account

To track positions in your main account (not a subaccount):

  1. Create API key for main account
  2. In WhisperHedge, leave subaccount field empty
  3. Or enter "Main Account" if required

When to Use Main Account

Use main account for:

  • Single-strategy users
  • Simple setups
  • Testing WhisperHedge
  • Personal positions only

Use subaccounts for:

  • Multiple strategies
  • Client management
  • Risk isolation
  • Complex setups

Migration Strategies

Moving to Subaccounts

If you're currently using main account and want to organize with subaccounts:

  1. Plan your structure - Decide on subaccount names/purposes
  2. Create subaccounts in Hyperliquid
  3. Transfer positions (if possible) or close and reopen
  4. Update WhisperHedge - Remove old positions, add new ones with subaccount names
  5. Generate new API keys for each subaccount

Consolidating Subaccounts

If you want to simplify:

  1. Close positions in subaccounts you want to remove
  2. Transfer funds back to main account
  3. Remove positions from WhisperHedge
  4. Delete subaccounts in Hyperliquid

Advanced Topics

Subaccount Limits

Hyperliquid may have limits on:

  • Number of subaccounts per main account
  • Transfers between accounts
  • API key creation

Check Hyperliquid documentation for current limits.

API Key Scope

API keys are scoped to:

  • Specific subaccount (or main account)
  • Cannot access other subaccounts
  • Cannot access main account (if created for subaccount)

This is a security feature.

Cross-Subaccount Transfers

Transfers between subaccounts:

  • Must go through main account
  • Cannot transfer directly between subaccounts
  • Requires two transactions (sub→main, main→sub)

Next: API Key Permissions →